Once students complete Typography I, they go on to the second type class where layout is examined through the design of an annual report. This type of document offers a wide range of typographic problems such as: grids, multi-page text flow, information graphics, photography, headlines, cutlines, folios and more, making it the perfect case study.

Each year I assign the annual Student Show Poster as a project in my screen printing class. This has become a popular tradition where the entire school votes on their favorite design to become the official poster for that year.

This annual project is assigned to a different class each time—layout one year, screen printing the next. Each completed assignment is entered in a competition to be selected as the official poster/t-shirt for that year's Peach Festival. This gives students the opportunity for a little exposure and well-earned recognition... and a shot at $500.

The objective the Portfolio I course is to build and refine a body of work into what constitutes a professional graphic design portfolio. This course helps students achieve that goal by improving current work and developing new content to address areas of weakness. Screen printing, bookbinding, and other processes are explored as means to create product mock ups, self-promos, and portfolio covers.  

Playing cards are one of my more popular projects. Each student designs three cards and the class selects a favorite that fills a complete deck. The cards are then sent to printing service where students can follow the job through each step in the process. The end result is a commercially printed piece for student portfolios, and a unique recruitment and fundraising tool for the School of Design.

The project started as a standard deck in two colors, red and silver. Overall it was a success, but having such different designs from each student made identifying what was in your hand a challenge. The next year I switched the game to Old Maid which suits the process much better—although I had to educate some of my students on how it's played.  

After the first run were able to increase our specs to CMYK with a metallic spot color. For an added twist we incorporated ChromaDepth® 3D technology into the designs. With the right glasses the imagery pops off the page but looks perfectly normal without them.

ENTR 430: Innovative Product Design (IPD) brings together students from engineering, art, and business to investigate the methodologies behind successful product design. The ten week course is an intensive hands-on introduction to the materials, theories, aesthetics, and strategies driving product development in today’s marketplace. 

IPD has been a labor of love for me and my colleagues—Dr. Debbie Inman (Business), and Dr. Kelly Crittenden (Engineering)—as we volunteered our time to nurture it through infancy. A couple of years into the project we were awarded a grant to establish a product design lab that would allow us to get more 'hands on'. The Thingery is now a resource open to all Tech students and faculty and has become a hub of interdisciplinary research. 

IPD projects are now appearing in the Top Dawg idea pitch competition and I-20 Business Accelerator. One particularly notable outcome is OpTech, a new campus organization founded by a former student who was inspired by his IPD experience. I agreed to serve as faculty advisor and help fulfill their mission to address design problems at the university and in the local community.

Art 261: Typography I is the first type class students take in their sophomore year. Technology has made the process of type design so accessible that I decided to rebuild the class around designing a typeface. This micro approach gives students a thorough understanding of the thought and purpose behind the design of typefaces. This carries over to the second type class where layout is examined through projects such as annual reports.

At the end of the class students have a functioning font they can load onto their computers and use in projects. This means others can, too, which introduces interesting self-promotion and entrepreneurial possibilities.

Perpetual calendars are an assignment from my print production class. The objective is to learn the basics of spot color printing by   preparing digital files for separation and printing.

Each student designs a full set of days, dates, and months. The class then goes through a selection process to produce one calendar from each of their work. I act as the service provider by compiling the files and printing the final pieces—which the students then assemble by hand.

My screen printed approach allows students to explore different paper types, varnishes, metallics, and phosphorescent inks first-hand. In the end, each student gets a hand-printed product that provides a tangible example of the entrepreneurial potential they possess.  

I recently expanded my print production class to include more industrial processes used to create signage. Students are introduced to laser etching, CNC routing, plasma cutting, sand blasting, powder coating, and good old fashioned metal working. The greater skill set obviously increases a student's marketability. But more importantly, the experience prepares them for a maker economy where they can fully capitalize on their creativity. 

I partnered with Ruston Parks and Recreation to design and fabricate unique signs for each of the city's parks as a real-world project for my class. The first to be completed was Elmore D. Mayfield Park which was more sculpture than sign. It was built from a literal ton of 1/8" steel and comes in at 24' x 10'. The next sign, which is still in production, is for Duncan Park. This time around we're taking a simpler approach by wet casting a concrete-like mixture into a mold created by CNC routing a sheet of 3" foam. 

I came up with this project as a way to introduce type anatomy. It's an icebreaker assignment I give at the beginning of class that sensitizes students to the subtleties of typographic form. It's also a lot of fun.

The first time around I collected everyone's work and compiled it into a book titled Alphabeasts. I based it around a loose 'circle of life' narrative I created from the unique personalities of the students' creations. I now screen print specimen posters that feature one selection from each student as chosen by the class. This exercise gave me the inspiration for a line of children's educational products—that's when the name changed to LMNOBeasts™ and branding process began.